PARKERSBURG - A surge in vehicle breaking and enterings has local police on alert for suspicious subjects.
In January, Parkersburg Police Department received 81 reports of vehicles being entered. To tackle the problem, police are using an improved reporting system which does not lump vehicle breaking and enterings with other larcenies.
Instead, vehicle entries are entered into the system in a separate category, said Sgt. Greg Collins, with the Parkersburg Police Department.
"This was done to get a more accurate depiction of what has become the most prevalent crime in the city," said Collins.
In the past three weeks, the vehicle entries have been recorded throughout the city, but some rashes have been concentrated in specific areas, such as 17th Street, 19th Street and the parking lot of Brickhouse Cardio Club near Memorial Bridge. Others were reported in a Third Street parking garage, the parking lot of Kimes Funeral Home on Fifth Street and the parking lot of Family Fitness Center on Birch Street.
"We are still seeing a tremendous number of vehicles being entered while unlocked, but we are seeing the instances increase where the windows are being busted out and valuables which are visible within the vehicle are taken," said Collins. "We also have seen instances where a window will be busted out and a criminal searched a car for valuables that aren't necessarily visible."
The crimes are taking place both day and night, in crowded parking lots and secluded alleys, he said.
Everything from loose change, purses, laptop computers, college textbooks, CDs and iPods have been stolen from vehicles in recent weeks.
Police are taking a proactive approach to solving and preventing these crimes, said Collins.
"Uniformed officers have always conducted field interviews with people who are out walking, riding bicycles, or even driving at late hours or who appear to be acting suspiciously," said Collins. "Officers fill out a brief form which contains the person's biographical and contact information. Pictures of these persons are taken in some instances. This information is forwarded to detectives who, when a crime is committed in a certain area, will review the field interviews for that time frame and begin to see if any of the persons stopped could be a suspect in the crime."
Undercover officers assigned to the Street Crime Unit routinely look for would-be criminals in action, he said.
With an increasing number of calls for service, catching criminals in the act has become a challenge for the department. In 2011, officers answered 44,780 calls, up from 37,220 in 2010.
"The inability to do as much proactive police work undoubtedly causes the number of vehicle entries to rise," said Collins. "A lot of the suspects in these vehicle entries are also thought to be involved in burglaries, robberies, and other serious crimes, with most likely contributing to the drug problem in the city in one way or another."
In the next few months, police will increase their proactive police work using grants and overtime funds.
To make a vehicle less susceptible to breaking and enterings, keep them locked at all times. If valuables must be kept in cars, keep them well-concealed, said Collins.
